Four Chiefs who could join Eric Bieniemy with Washington Commanders
By Matt Conner
It’s only natural for Eric Bieniemy to want to bring along some friendly faces in the nation’s capital.
After 10 years coaching on the sidelines alongside Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, it’s safe to say Eric Bieniemy likely felt quite at home at Arrowhead Stadium. While he clearly relishes the challenges ahead of him with the Washington Commanders, he might want to bring along some familiar faces and names to help him get established in a new job.
No, Bieniemy is not a head coach as he deserves somewhere, but he’s taken on a new role anyway as the offensive coordinator and assistant head coach for the Washington Commanders. Here, he’ll be tasked with turning around an offense currently centered on second-year quarterback Sam Howell.
Bieniemy is the man for the job after having helped the Chiefs put up the league’s most dynamic offense year after year during his stint in Kansas City. His work alongside Reid and Mahomes should have Washington’s fans excited for the offensive potential here, especially after suffering through one mediocre (or worse) season after another. After all, Washingon hasn’t had an offense ranked in the top 25 percent of the NFL since the 2012 season.
Can BIeniemy get the Commanders back on track? Can the offense match the defense’s intensity in 2023 and beyond? Here’s a look at some current Chiefs players who could join with Bieniemy in D.C.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire
As if Clyde Edwards-Helaire didn’t already face an uncertain future in Kansas City.
The Chiefs’ former first-round pick has been a bit of an odd fit ever since the team selected him at No. 32 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, but the dissonance between player and team has only been amplified in the last couple of weeks by two primary events. First, the Chiefs activated Edwards-Helaire from injured reserve only to leave him as a healthy scratch in Super Bowl LVII. The Chiefs rolled with three running backs, not including fullback Michael Burton, but chose Ronald Jones instead, leaving CEH on the outside looking in even when he was ready to roll.
Even more recently, Edwards-Helaire decided he’d rather skip the parade and ensuing festivities celebrating that Super Bowl win in Kansas City. Instead, Edwards-Helaire flew to New York City to take part in its famed Fashion Week. While it’s another clear passion of his, the timing felt off and feels like part of an overall narrative of two sides set to part ways.
If that’s the case, it could be interesting to see what Edwards-Helaire could do given a change of scenery. Bieniemy is a former running back himself who likely has a vision for how Edwards-Helaire could be used effectively. Remember also that CEH was the first player drafted at his position, meaning he’s just not a first-round investment but he was also viewed as the best of his lot.
There are reasons known and unknown for Edwards-Helaire’s inability to make an impact with the Chiefs (and that includes several nagging injuries that have robbed him of some opportunities) but if he ended up going with Bieniemy in Washington, it also wouldn’t be all that surprising if he managed to kickstart his career outside of K.C.